Mana Wars
by royjoy
Summary: Due to the increase in mana, magitechnology is once again being developed. A world war is inevitable, and the now separated group of heroes has to decide whether they will betray their people... or betray their friends. -Spoilers- -Rating WILL Increase-
1. Chapter 1

**Mana Wars**

**Chapter 1**

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Review Replies: None yet!

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Lloyd heard a stiff knock on the oaken door of his chamber.

"Come in." said Lloyd distastefully.

The gruff man stepped inside the small room and handed a scroll to Lloyd.

"A message to you, General Irving."

"Leave it here," came the cold reply. "I'll take care of it."

The other man left, leaving Lloyd by himself.

Lloyd surveyed the room once again. The cold, gray stone walls chilled the room, and the massive amounts of notes on his desk lay ignored.

After the door shut, Lloyd's office was pitch black. He chuckled. Lucky for him that he knew every inch of the place.

Quickly, he retrieved a candle and lit it, bringing minimal light into the room. He grabbed the scroll that was just delivered and unraveled it slowly. As he did, he saw that on the back of the parchment, _Fujibayashi_ was written in gold ink.

He wondered if this was his old friend writing to him. The thought left his mind as quickly as it had come. It was probably from someone else, anyway. It always was. Countless times he believed that his long-gone acquaintances were sending for him. Yet every scroll he unraveled was another so-called noble begging for him to bless their child, or some kind of nonsense like that.

While his mind was busy bickering about the possibilities, Lloyd took the opportunity to begin reading the mysterious message. As he held the candle close to the paper, but not too close as to set the parchment alight, he could make out the first few sentences.

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"_Dear General Irving,_

_I am commander Fujibayashi of the Mizuho tribe. I have come to you for help._

_Our lands are in a dire state. Our countries are on the brink of a world war. It may not be obvious, but due to our quest to restore the balance between Tethe'alla and Sylvarant, the power of mana has flourished in both worlds. This has led to the recreation of magitechnology, and many nations are secretly building massive mechanical armies. You must understand our position in these times._

_As the leader of the Mizuho people, I face a terrible decision; a decision that may destroy me, whichever choice I may make. My fellow kind are urging me to begin the creation of an army to protect the Mizuho tribes, they want me to be part of the war. If I do not create an army, Mizuho will be no more in a short time. But if I do make that choice, I will side against my friends._

_If you have not heard yet, the Sage siblings are now in control of a large portion of Sylvarant, while Zelos Wilder and Mr. Bryant each hold their own followers. Presea Combatir is an elite general of many small nations. I know that Colette is part of your own council over in Sylvarant, but you mustn't tell her any of this._

_And finally, you father, Kratos Aurion, is a commander of the Cruxis Angels, along with Yuan. They are both no longer under anyone's control, and they have had their way since we destroyed Yggdrasil._

_Please, I beg you to help me find a way to stop this war. Remember when you saved the two worlds? No one else thought that there was any other choice than to accept the circumstances. I need your wisdom. Together, we can find the others that we used to travel with so long ago, and we can unite once again to save these lands._

_I would like to arrange a secret meeting with you, so that we con solve this tragic problem together. I will keep the location and time secret, but you may find those out after you decipher the riddle I have written:  
_

_Where the shadows of giants circle from all around,  
__And the light of mana can still be found._

_After the passion of Earth has fed the ground,  
__A noise can be heard, among whistling sounds._

_Come when a third world appears to have gone,  
__And the sweetness of magenta has almost withdrawn.  
_

_Hopeful wishes,_

_Commander Fujibayashi._"

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Lloyd stared at the paper in a sleeplike state, and none would have ever guessed that he was busy working the words of the riddle around in his mind. None other than one man in the entire two worlds, and that one man happened to be the one spying on Lloyd at the time. 

Many hours later Lloyd fell asleep, tired of all the thinking he had done on the puzzle. He would have been perfectly safe from any spies as well, if he hadn't been muttering the riddle over and over in his sleep.

_He had better watch his back in his carelessness, _thought the spy, as he used a concentration of mana to burn the words of the poem into his skin.


	2. Chapter 2

**Mana Wars**

**Chapter 2**

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NOTE: You all have probably noticed that I have not updated this story for months. I have been very busy, and I have had no time for fanfiction. But, do not fret, I have the next 20 chapters planned out, and I will certainly write them. All in good time. Unfortunately, I lost the storyboard I made, but I think that I have enough of it in my head that I can write a couple more chapters before I find it.

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**Review Replies:**

**Sekana Katayama:** Glad that my story actually challenges the minds of my readers… yay!

**Ocean Rose:** Yes, I've tried to make this original. And, yes, the time was easy, except for the line, '_When the sweetness of magenta has almost withdrawn'_. I think that that's the trickiest line in the whole poem. And also, I thought that the place wasn't very challenge either, but, alas, I always surprise myself.

**E.S. Simeon:** Who knows what the parings will be? For now, I'm keeping them a secret.

**a passer by:** No flaming in reviews, please! I mean it. Like I said, the pairings are a secret. I'm glad you see Lloyd the way I do. Not many people look at him that way. Many stories portray Lloyd as stupid, hungry, and confused. But if you actually play the video game, you see that he is a great leader and makes wise decisions.

**Lightning Dragon:** You would be muttering something in your sleep, too, if you had been fully concentrating on it for the past five hours.

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_1 Week Later_

The spy looked at a clock through on of the windows of the building that he had been watching for the past week. _He should be leaving soon,_ thought the spy. _What's taking him so long?_

But at that moment, the giant wooden door on the spies left side was pushed open abruptly, cutting off all of his thoughts that were circulating his mind.

_Is it him? I'm tired of waiting._

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Lloyd walked his horse out of the oaken stable doors. He thought that he heard a rustling to his right, but it must've been just a squirrel or two. 

Lloyd liked squirrels. He often found that he could relate to them. Both were quick to take action in a dangerous situation. Both of them had brown hair. Both of them liked nuts.

Lloyd quietly laughed at his little private joke. He often thought about funny things to cheer him up. Lately, he had been feeling so tired and sad.

But the problem with squirrels was- wait, what _was_ the problem with squirrels. He could not see anything wrong with them. The only thing that could _possibly_ be wrong with squirrels was-

At that moment, Lloyd suddenly snapped back into reality to find his horse heading straight for a tree. 'Whoa, boy," Lloyd yelled to his horse as he steered it back on to the path that was to lead him to his destination.

He was on a journey to meet Commander Fujibayashi of the Mizuho people, an old friend of his. It was to be a secret meeting, but how secret it was Lloyd did not really know. But it was something secret enough that the location of the meeting could not be written in the latter that was sent to him.

He had to find out the time and place of the meeting by deciphering a riddle that was in the letter. It had taken him a week to solve it, but he was one-hundred-percent sure that he had the correct conclusions. At least, ninety-percent sure.

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_What an idiot_. 

The spy was amazed that Lloyd, the general of an entire army, could have taken _this long_ to solve a simple child's puzzle. _It only took me an hour._

_But, then again, I AM unnaturally intelligent._

This was something the spy liked about himself, among other things. He was stealthy and a great secret keeper, which helped when you were a spy. He had strong magical powers, and was talented in combat. But his _favorite_ aspect about himself was that he was _gorgeous._ At least, he thought so.

But Lloyd was already a few miles ahead of the spy on the trail, and it was time that the spy started to follow.

_I can catch back up to him in no time._

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Lloyd once again thought that he heard rustling in the bushes behind him, and more that once considered turning around to take a look. But he knew that many things could make a noise like that, and few of them were harmful. After all, how could anyone else have gotten hold of the letter. 

The journey was slow. But, then again, Lloyd thought, _all epic quests start slowly. Ones filled with danger, excitement, and love…_

Where did he get that thought? He wasn't expecting any kind of romance between him and Sheena. That would just be… well, lame. First of all, he did not need to be involved in a relationship. Secondly, Sheena had never taken a liking to him. Lastly, Sheena did not mention anything like _that_ in her briefing about the private meeting.

_What am I doing?_ Lloyd's thoughts normally didn't stray into this area of his life. Of course, eh didn't _really_ have a love life. Yeah, someone like him _never_ had a chance with the girls.

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The spy darted from tree to tree, and when he thought he had enough room, brought out his angel wings for quicker movement. But he had to be sure that Lloyd would not be looking, or the bright fluorescent colors of his wings would surely give him away. 

_This is no time for games. Why is he stalling?_

As the spy look at Lloyd's face, he saw an expression of utter fear.


End file.
